Timeline Theory Essay
by Richie S
Summary: Self explanatory, these are my thoughts on the timeline of the Zelda games.


The timeline of the Legend of Zelda series had been subject to much speculation in the fan base. As a lifelong LoZ fan I am no exception to this and will now give my views on the order of the games followed by explanation.

1st Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask

This one is easy; Miyamoto said Ocarina was the first game in the series back in '98 and 2nd part of the game as adult Link matches up nicely with the Imprisoning War described in LttP. Granted that was a full scale military conflict and not a lone operative like Link but my view is that the full scale war happened shortly after Link opened the Temple of Time door and the actual banishing of Ganon happened 7 years later during the final battle. Hylian historians, unaware of Link's contribution in the future because it had not yet happened assumed that Ganondorf was never seen again because of the conflict that they would call the Imprisoning War. MM was an interesting side quest but it does not really fit into the primary story line so while canonical I cannot reference it because there is nothing to reference.

2nd Link to the Part/Twilight Princess

This will probably be the most unpopular part of my essay, is my opinion that Link to the Past and Twilight Princess are alternate versions of the same story. While it is true the two games do have some differences they also have countless similarities, let me list them.

1) Back story: Imprisoning War in LttP, the banishment of the Shadow People in TP.

2) Alternate realities: Light World/Dark World for LttP and Hyrule/Twilight Realm for TP.

3) Shape shifting: Link as bunny in LttP and his "sacred beast" form in TP.

4) Master Sword: Is found in the Lost Woods in LttP and the Sacred Grove in TP.

5) Ganon's fate: In LttP Ganon is clearly destroyed as he is seen exploding. I am a little fuzzy on TP as it has been a few years since I played it, but I do believe that after his first resurrection with the Triforce earlier in the game that Ganon is killed by Link.

These are an awful lot of similarities; I can remember watching the cut scene that shows the Shadows banishment to the Twilight Realm and my mind immediately went back to the LttP instruction manual's description of the Imprisoning War. The alternate version theory has been on my mind ever since. So which one is the true version? That is all in the eye of the beholder. Quite frankly both were excellent games that had a lot to offer. I loved the hinted relationship with Midna in TP and the mystery of Agahnim in LttP just to name a few bright spots of both games. In short it does not really matter which is the "true" version of the story.

3rd (NES) Legend of Zelda and Zelda II: The Adventure of Link

The earliest games are the latest in the timeline. One may question why Ganon is in LoZ as he was killed earlier. Please remember Zelda II, if Link is killed and his blood is sprinkled on Ganon's remains Ganon will revive. His minions must have done some kind of blood sacrifice to resurrect him for LoZ. The original is the most basic of the Zelda games and sets up the model to follow, Link get Triforce, defeat Ganon and save Zelda. In fact if one wishes to interpret it as such then LoZ is not an individual story in and of itself but merely a summation of all the other reiterations of the Zelda mythos that have been handed down over the years. Initially I had a problem with this interpretation in that I really liked playing through Zelda II and without Zelda 1 it is kind of floating out there with nothing to anchor it to the series. Then I realized that if Zelda 1 is just a summation of the different versions of the Zelda mythos then Zelda II could have happened at _anytime_ during the timeline. Problem solved!

As a side note I also theorize that the origin of Dark Link was the result of a forbidden romance between Link and Midna that happened after TP. During the times of actual twilight in Hyrule the dimensional barriers were weakened and Link and Midna found a way to be together day after day if only for a short time. Eventually a child was conceived through this and because his father was never around he thought he was an abandoned child and grew to hate his father. But we are getting int another essay, back on topic.

Non-canocial games: All Gameboy (with the exception of Link's Awakening as it ties in with LttP), GBA and DS games are not canonical. That is not to say they are not good, (I really enjoyed the Oracle games) just that they throw in a lot of content that makes it very hard to make sense of the larger timeline and universe in which Zelda occurs. So I use Occam's razor and remove them from the series canon. Wind Waker also goes and let me explain why. It is not because of the cel-shaded art style or difficulty to explain flood that I type this but out of a more basic concern. The game in terms of theme was just not a Zelda game. Sure the beginning was cool with the lead through from Ocarina and the Kokiri/Korok evolution worked as well, but in the end it was not Zelda. Zelda is an epic adventure to save the world true to the spirit of any fantasy classic such as Lord of the Rings, Dungeons & Dragons, you name it. WW was a fetch quest that happened to use Zelda characters and some Zelda motifs. However that does not make a Zelda game as can be seen from the Phillip's CDI games that were "Zelda" titles. Not saying that WW was **that **bad, it just was not a Zelda game and does not belong in the timeline.

In summation here is the timeline as figured by me

1st Ocarina/Majora 2ndLttP/Twilight 3rd LoZ/Adventure of Link

Or

1st Ocarina/Majora 2nd LttP/Twilight

*Adventure of Link can be squeezed in anywhere in the timeline.


End file.
